Therin drifted back until he was absent from my periphery.
“I promise you, my lady”—My lady? Where had that come from? Was I supposed to bow?—“I have no evil intentions for you or any mer. I only wish to be a part of this… family.”
She cocked her head, her expression changing from defensive to curious.“You have lived your entire life on land. What of your family there? Why seek life under our waves?”
“The rest of my family is dead. There is nothing left for me there.”Grandma flitted through my mind, but like Finn, she was easily ushered away.
She glided back, giving me more space, making me feel less interrogated.“What of a mate? You appear to be of age. You should be reproducing by now.”
I shook my head.“No mate. And even so, I wouldn’t be reproducing anyway.”
She took on a tone of surprised interest.“Is that so? Is it something in the combination of your blood that inhibits your virility? I know demons are quite prolific. Maybe the combination with mer is inhospitable.”
Not only did I have to be naked, but now I had to discuss my sex life and fertility.“It’s not that. Well, maybe. I wouldn’t know if I’m fertile or not. I’ve never been tested.”
Confusion crossed her face.“I don’t know this word, ‘tested.’ How would you not know if you are incapable of reproduction?”
How many times was Finn going to be shoved into my mind today?“I was in love with a man. Making a baby wasn’t the issue.”No, there hadn’t been enough time for babies to be an issue. Just enough time to fall in love and freak the fuck out.
“In love with—”I swear I could hear an intake of breath, but that couldn’t be possible.“You were in love with a male.”Her fingers began to twitch over her breast.“You would engage in penetration with another male?”
Oh. How did I not catch on sooner that this might be an issue? As if fire wasn’t enough.
Syleen wheeled to Therin.“This and demonic fire? What do you bring into our midst, Therin? What sort of destruction do you seek?”
Therin looked back and forth between Syleen and me, for once his composure shaken.“I did not know.”
Ouch. I guess father-son bonding time was over.
“There seems to be much you do not know, Therin. For your sake, let us hope the trend is fleeting.”
She seemed unable to decide which of us was more deserving of her condemning stare, my father or me. I glanced down, expecting to see the water around my fists beginning to boil. With sheer force of will, I unclenched my fingers and shook them, letting the caress of the water soothe my nerves.
Again, her shoulder and chin declared her superiority.“It is too much, Therin. Too much. You may stay, if you choose, for now. Your son needs to find his own way. I would suggest on land. It appears the demonic blood is more apparent than I first perceived.”
Without my noticing the approach, a merman appeared beside Syleen. A quick glance over to him told me he had been one of the five who had greeted me when I’d entered the meadow. Like the others, his tail was breathtaking, a bluish gray. The rest of him was rather unfortunate-looking. Whereas the other mers I’d glimpsed were slender, they also seemed robust with health and lithe with muscle. This one was just thin, and his scared face was almost a study in Dalí asymmetry. Another jagged scar traveled across his chest and ran down his left side into the hip portion of his tail.
His voice was strong. Deep and kind.“There have been others, Syleen. We did not cast them away.”
She looked over her shoulder.“While that is true, Zef, that does not mean it was a decision we should have made. And even so, they were one of us, a part of our tribe. And while they did not help continue our race, they committed to maintaining appropriate relations with other males.”She gave me a dismissive gesture, her intimidation forgotten.“He is demon, and definitely not part of our tribe.”
I tried to keep my eyes focused on the queen, but treacherously, they slid over to my father. His head was down, shoulders slumped.
The mer called Zef only hesitated a moment before motioning toward Therin.“It seems, Syleen, that he is part of the tribe.”
She only stared at him, her lips curved as if there was a stench around her.
Zef continued,“I am sure Therin’s son would be willing to make commitments to appropriate actions.”
Syleen turned to me.“Would you, Brett?”So, she did know my name, and it seemed to burn her tongue as much as my fire would.“Would you give your oath to refrain from your demonic corruption?”
Before I could respond, Zef broke in.“I do not think it fair or accurate to apply demonic influences on this issue. Our brothers who suffered from the same affliction had no such heritage.”
“Your semantics are the last of my need, Zef. Even more so your unsolicited advice.”She kept her eyes on the merman, no longer willing to offer the oh-so-glorious gift of her gaze.“What say you, demon? Will you oath or depart?”
I wanted to curse her. Wanted to turn and swim away. Who needed her? Wanted to set her ablaze.
I was back in the kitchen. Grandfather’s fury unleashed. Grandmother behind him, tears streaming but giving no aid. He hadn’t even offered the option of promises or change. Only exile. Only separation.
